Machine for trimming soles of boots and shoes



2 sheets-sheen.

-Maohi e f0r Trimming Soles of Boots and Shoes.- N0. L Patented March 8,188].

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2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. W. DODGE. Maohlne for TrimmingSoleg. of.B00tsaJnd Shoes. N0. 238,66l. Patented March 8,1881.

IIIIII' llll UNITED STATES PATENT @rrroie.

J. WESLEY DODGE, OF MALDEN, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR TRIMMING SOLES OF BOOTS AND SHOES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 238,661, dated March 8, 1881.

Application filed December 5, 1878.

To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, J. WESLEY DODGE, of Malden, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Machines for Trimming the Soles of Boots and Shoes, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof.

In the drawings, Figure l is a side view; Fig. 2, a plan Fig. 3, a vertical section, showing the mechanism for moving the tool. Fig. at is a perspective of thejack-carrier; and Fig. 7, a sectional view of the same. Fig. is a sectional view, explained below. Fig. 6 is a modification, explained below.

In my machine the knife is moved over the edge to be trimmed by a steady motion imparted by power, while the shoe is held on a jack until the knife approaches the curves of the toe, and while trimming around the curves of the toe the shoe is swung or turned halfround, and at the same time moved bodily in the direction in which the knife is moving.

The main features of my invention relate to the jack or shoe-holder and the tool-carrying mechanism; and it consists, first, in a jackor shoe-holder, in combination with a jack-supportingarm carrying a gearand a rack mounted, as hereinafter explained, so that the shoe, when swung half-round, will also be moved bodily; and, secondly, in a knife or plane flexibly connected with a carriage impelled by power and controlled by a clutch, so that the knife or plane is moved by power in one direction, but can be readily drawn back. I will now proceed to describe in detail both these combinations of mechanism and explain how they are used.

A represents a suitable standard, upon the top of which is mounted my improved jackcarrier. This jack-carrier consists of a shaft, a, from one end of which extends an arm or crank, 1), upon which is secured ajacking mechanism of any suitable construction, whether for holding the last with the shoe upon it or for holding the shoe without a last. The gear 0 upon the shaft a meshes with the rack d, so that when the shaft 01 is turned it not only revolves upon its axis, but also moves bodily sidewise, as will be clear without further explanation. The shaft to is best supported in sliding blooksfg, as shown, but may, of course, Joe otherwise supported.

As it is desirable to bring all portions of the edge of the sole near the same horizontal plane, thejack (by which is meant the shoe-holding mechanism) should be so placed upon the crank b that the center of the toe part (so to speak) of the sole shall be in line with the axis of the shaft a. By this, as will be clear from Figs. 2 and 4, the edge of the toe part of the sole is brought into nearly the same horizontal plane as the other parts of the sole edge. In other words, the knife moves above and below a horizontal plane very much less than if the axis of shaft a were in line with the middle of the sole.

Either of the two common forms of handtool may be used. If the edge-plane B be used (as I prefer, that being the tool now very largely used for the best work) it is attached to the carriage a, which is mounted in suitable ways upon the pedestal A by a rod, 1), which is so jointed to the tool B and to the carriage a, as to allow the necessary motions of that too], up and down, sidewise, and the various tipping motions which are necessary. The carriage a is moved by power in one direction, and yet can be readily drawn back at will, when the clutch through which power is communicated to it is unclutched.

A variety of mechanical'means may be readily devised for supporting and actuating the carriage a; butl have chosen the means shown as being, on the whole, preferable to any others that have occurred to me. These means are the upright shaft 0 on the pedestal A, which receives a constant rotary motion from one or the other of the two bevel-gears df, and carries upon its upper end the clutch g and gear h, which meshes into a rack fast to the carriage a. The gear h is loose upon the shaft 0, and bears the other member of the clutch, so that when the moving member of the clutch g is lifted by the treadle k the gear It moves with the shaft 0 and moves the carriage a but when the clutch g is depressed the gear h is stationary, and the carriage a may be readily moved by the rod b. The use of the two bevel-gears d l is fully described below.

The operation is as follows: The shoe, having been properly secured upon the arm I), is brought to ahorizontal position, with the heel next the operator, who grasps the handle of the tool B precisely as if he were about to trim the edge by hand. (The tool B hangs in convenient proximity by means of cord 1) and eye q.) He then brings the cutting-edge of tool B to the proper place on the edge to be trimmed and depresses treadle k, thereby causing the carriage a to move away from him, carrying with it the tool B, which he guides with his right hand precisely as in hand-work, the main difference, and one of great practical value,

being that the cutting-edge of tool B is moved forward by a steady continuous motion by power, instead of intermittently by the muscles of the operator. When the tool in its motion over the edge approaches the round of the toe the operator, with his left hand, depresses the crank 1), thereby bringing the sole with its toe uppermost, and also moving the shoe bodily in the same direction that the knife moves in; and when the other round of the toe is reached he again moves the crank until the toe of the shoe is toward him instead of the heel as at first. He then holds the shoe in this position until the edge of the toolB reaches the desired part of the edge of the shoe near the heel, when he lifts the tool from the shoe, at the same time releasing treadle 7c, and thereby arresting the motion of carriage a.

It will be seen that by my machine a single unbroken out can be made from the heel on one side around the fore part and toe to the heel on the other side; but in case too little has been trimmed from any part of the edge the operator can readily pull back the carriage a and retrim such part or parts.

When the paring-knife B is used, as illustrated in Fig. 6, the operation is precisely the same, except that the operator starts with the toe of the shoe toward him. The tool B and the carriage a move toward and the crank b is pulled toward him when turning around the toe, instead of all these motions being from him, as before.

The two gears d f in pedestal A are used to give greater or less speed to the carriage a, the number of revolutions of shaft 0 being more when gear d is used than when f is used.

In trimming from the heel to the round of the toe the operator can guide the tool properly, although it moves very rapidly; but in trimming around the toe it is desirable that the tool should be moved more slowly. Consequently I have invented an automatic contrivance for changing the rate of motion of the tool, consisting of these two gears d f and the clutch 4", which is suitably connected with the lever s and this lever is actuated so as to throw the clutch 1" from the larger gear d to the smaller gearj as soon as the toe of the sole is brought under the knife, the sliding block 9 having its under surface formed with a cam to depress one end of the lever s at the proper time and release it after the toe has been trimmed.

This part of my invention consists in the combination of the jack-carrier with the carriage a and an automatic mechanism, by means of which mechanism the motion of the jack-carrier shall change the speed of the carriage a.

The hand-plane B and the paring-ki'iite B are such as are commonly used, with the addition of an eye near the cutting-edge by which to connect them with rod 1), and a second eye, q, for cord 19.

What I claim as my invention is- 1. The jack-carrier above described, consisting of thejack'supporting arm I), shaft a, slides f g, gear 0, and rack d, the whole combination operating to move the shaft sidewise when the shoe is turned.

2. In combination, the edge-trimming tool, connecting-rod I), carriage a, and rack and pinion, the pinion being controlled by the clutch mechanism and in gear with the rack on the carriage, substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. In combination, shaft a, slide g, lever s, clutch 1", gears d f, shaft 0, gear h, and carriage a, substantially as described.

J. YVESLEY DODGE.

Vitnesses J. E. MAYNADIER, GEORGE O. G. COALE. 

